amateur hour
/ˈæmətɚ ˈaʊɚ/
Word Rarity
Uncommon
Frequency: 4.18 in modern English
16
Scrabble Score
11
Letters
2
Syllables
8
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
An event, particularly on radio or television, showcasing the talents of amateur performers.
American usage; Countable; Uncountable
noun
A situation or activity in which the participants show a lack of skill, sound judgment, or professionalism.
American usage; Countable; Uncountable
Example Sentences
- "Near-synonym: amateur night"
- ""Momma was very talented. She liked to act in plays … She used to sing, do a lot of singing in French, you know. … They used to have amateur hours in those days. You didn't have that many places to go." She performed for the amateur hours at church fairs and at St. James High School."
- "[T]alent shows such as Ted Mack’s Original Amateur Hour, which was patterned on the 1930s Major Bowes’ Amateur Hour and Arthur Godfrey[’s] Talent Scouts,^([sic]) went on the air. In fact, that goes back to the days of vaudeville and beyond. The talent contests and amateur hours that go back centuries are in fact very much like America’s Got Talent."
- "Two years into its first term the [Jimmy] Carter Administration developed a foreign policy that seems in perfect continuity with its six predecessors. […] Little change has taken place during what has been called "the amateur hour" except for a slight quickening of the Cold War pulse."
- "The First World War may have brought, as Dos Passos maintained, an end to "the bully amateur's world," but amateur hour was already closing down as American soldiers struggled up San Juan Hill. Three books written between 1897 and 1899 are flashes that streaked the sky at the moment "the boy culture" of volunteers was displaced (and absorbed) by the "dirtywork" of regulars committed to the culture of management."
- ""It's the kind of foul-up that suggests that his [Rudy Giuliani's] campaign team isn't functioning as well as it should," the G.O.P. source said. "Presidential campaigns are not the time for amateur hour.""
Etymology
, the host of Major Bowes Amateur Hour which was broadcast on the radio in the US from 1934 to 1945]] Probably from the names of series of US radio and television programs such as Major Bowes Amateur Hour (broadcast on the radio 1934–1945) and The Original Amateur Hour (on the radio 1948–1952, and on television 1948–1970).
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈæmətɚ ˈaʊɚ/
- British English: /ˈamətə ˈaʊə(ɹ)/
Usage
- American usage
- Countable
- Uncountable